Hi, I’m the Hero’s Father ～I’m Sorry For All The Trouble My Foolish Son Has Caused You～ - Chapter 26

Chapter 26   The hero’s father educates / The hero’s mother sees through

Croix let out a deep sigh and pulled a piece of rubble to use as a chair.

“Alka, you said you’ve awakened the power of the Hero.”

“Y-yes.”

“Hmm.”

Alka’s power when he attacked earlier—an immense strength, a self-regeneration ability that healed even the gravest of wounds, and a light that could destroy demons, even the Demon King. It was undoubtedly the legendary power of the Hero.

But.

“Have you honed that power?”

“Huh?”

“I’m asking if you’ve trained.”

“Um, well… I’ve sparred with knights… and fought in actual battles…”

“And besides that?”

“I-I haven’t…”

Following Lyric’s advice, he sparred with knights just enough to avoid getting too exhausted and fought magical creatures and dragons alongside his companions. In truth, there wasn’t much difference between the time he gained his power and now.

“Do you think you can defeat the Demon King with such lack of dedication?”

“…I don’t think so.”

“Then why aren’t you training?”

“Th-that’s…”

He couldn’t admit that he was too comfortable with his current life. Drinking and eating to excess daily, indulging in women—everything he desired came to him just because he was the Hero. If he were honest, he knew another barrage of punches would follow.

Unable to say anything, Alka remained silent.

“If the legends are true, the Demon King can only be defeated by mastering the power of the Hero. Your mission is to defeat the Demon King. Remember that well.”

“Y-yes.”

Alka nodded earnestly at Croix’s words. He had heard from the knight commander that only the Hero’s power could defeat the Demon King. But in his intoxication with the awakened Hero’s power, he had forgotten that important fact.

Being admonished by Croix brought a clear change to Alka’s heart.

“And about Saya. Although the engagement was arranged by us parents, you two seemed very close. Why did you abandon her?”

“I-I didn’t abandon her!”

“Then why did Saya return to the village in tears?”

“……”

Alka couldn’t say anything. Indeed, he hadn’t seen Saya recently. No, he hadn’t spoken to her properly in the past year. When he gained his current status, she frequently admonished him for his behavior with other women. He found it annoying, but he never imagined she had returned to the village.

Seeing Alka remain silent again, Croix seemed to understand and sighed once more.

“You need to resolve things properly with Saya. Understood?”

“…Got it.”

She was an annoying childhood friend, but if they had parted on bad terms, he needed to apologize. He had to.

As Alka harbored these feelings, Croix nodded deeply and spoke again.

“Lastly, have you ever thought about what it means to be a Hero?”

“You mean, the purpose of a Hero?”

“Exactly.”

It was an unexpected question. He had never thought about the purpose of a Hero.

“Um… to defeat the Demon King, I guess.”

“That’s the ultimate goal. That’s not what I mean. I’m asking about the literal purpose of your existence.”

“The purpose of my existence…”

As a Hero.

As the Hero.

What is a Hero?

…He couldn’t think of anything.

“…I don’t know.”

“I see… then here’s a hint. Go to the places where you’ve fought and look at the faces of the people who live there.”

“Their faces?”

“Yes. Then you’ll understand what it means to be a Hero.”

Croix gave Alka a light knock on the head (though it was still painful enough to make him wince) and showed him a gentle smile.

“Talent is finite, but choices are infinite. With the right choices, a person can become endlessly strong. Don’t stray from the path, keep moving forward. That’s all.”

With those words, Croix left Alka behind and returned to the tent. Alka stood there, stunned, reflecting on what Croix had said.

Inside the Guest Tent

Soon after Croix took Alka away, Wiel turned her attention to Lyric.

“Prime Minister Lyric. Are you done begging for your life?”

“—-!?”

Lyric, whose mouth was gagged, shook her head vigorously in denial.

“Oh my, what a troublesome person. Let’s wait a little longer, shall we? Alright, are you done now?”

“—-! —-!?”

Lyric struggled desperately to break free from the binding magic, but it was impossible. Normally, there would be some flaw in any spell, no matter how meticulously crafted. But this binding magic had no flaws whatsoever.

She realized she might be killed if she didn’t find a way out. Desperate to escape death, Lyric squirmed in her worm-like state.

“I’m quite angry, you know. Do you understand why?”

“—-!”

Lyric nodded vigorously, indicating her understanding with all her might since she couldn’t speak.

“Oh, I almost forgot. Your mouth was still covered. My mistake.”

(It was on purpose. Definitely on purpose, Wiel-sama.)

Mion mentally remarked as Wiel stuck her tongue out playfully. Despite having spent so much time with her recently, Mion still couldn’t fathom what went on in Wiel’s mind.

With a flick of her fingers, Wiel released the rope binding Lyric’s mouth.

“Cough, cough… Please forgive me! Please!”

“And which mouth is asking for forgiveness?”

As she floated the bound Lyric in the air, a pure white flame ignited in her right hand.

“Did you think I wouldn’t see through your true nature?”

“W-what do you mean? I’m just an ordinary human—”

“Assistant to the Demon King of the Demon King’s army, Lilith the Succubus.”

“Wha—!?”

Lyric—Lilith—was left speechless, her mouth opening and closing like a fish out of water. Mion stared in shock, looking back and forth between Wiel and Lilith.

“D-d-did you just say… assistant to the Demon King…?”

“Mion-chan, shh.”

“…!!”

Mion quickly covered her mouth with her hands, realizing that making a commotion would alert the people outside. She noticed that the Hero’s party members had no reaction to Wiel’s revelation. Glancing at the three of them, she saw their vacant, dazed expressions.

“It seems the three of them were under Lilith’s hypnosis. Or rather than being controlled, their sexual desires were heightened, making it easier for their rationality to break.”

“W-what… why…!?”

“Wondering how I knew? Trying to surpass my magical prowess is a few millennia too soon for you.”

Wiel waved the white flame, lightly scorching Lilith’s chin.

“It’s hot! Hot, hot, hot!”

“Quiet down. Please stay silent.”

“Mmph!?”

Wiel snapped her fingers, causing the ropes binding Lilith’s body to writhe and seal her mouth again.

“The Demon King’s orders are to weaken the hero appearing among humans. However, the hero’s power was more formidable than expected, so the hypnosis didn’t work well. At best, it only managed to disrupt the relationships around him. I started to suspect something was off after the incident with Saya.”

As the white flame scorched Lilith’s cheek, her body began to convulse, tears streaming down her face as she rolled her eyes back.

“Therefore, you used those around to tempt the adolescent Alka. How about it? Am I right?”

“────! ────!!”

Lilith desperately nodded as fast as she could.

Despite the cruel actions Wiel was performing with an angelic smile, Mion kept her gaze fixed on her.

“Well, Alka’s inability to shake off such mild temptation is also a problem. I’ll leave his education to my husband, but as for this matter, it’s about time we wrapped it up.”

“────!? ────!!”

The white flame spread over Lilith’s body. The sounds and smells of burning flesh and skin were masked by Wiel’s magic, so nothing from inside the tent would leak outside.

“The white flame won’t extinguish until it burns the target completely. It should be done in about ten more seconds.”

“────!? ────!!”

As the hellfire enveloped Lilith’s entire body, the ropes burned away.

“O-you! This magic, could it be—”

Before Lilith could finish her sentence, her body was consumed by the white flame and vanished.

“Hehe. My true identity is a secret between me and my husband♪”